


Starting Point

by IAmAllYetNotAtAll



Category: Captain America (Movies), Deadpool - All Media Types, Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Irondad, M/M, MCU compliant, Peter Parker-centric, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Swearing, Very Mild Violence, hinted peter parker/wade wilson, spiderson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-20
Updated: 2018-10-20
Packaged: 2019-08-04 17:55:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16351361
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IAmAllYetNotAtAll/pseuds/IAmAllYetNotAtAll
Summary: It took Tony years to figure out why Peter kept avoiding certain missions, but one day... everything clicks into place.Peter did not like Captain America.How that was possible? Tony didn't know. It was a mystery though, and he was going to solve it.(No A:IW spoilers, also not anti-Captain America).





	Starting Point

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there, and welcome!
> 
> Here is a lot of Irondad/Spiderson pandering as well as hinted Spideypool. Peter is 19 in this fic and Wade's age isn't specified. Please feel free to imagine whichever Spidey actor you want.
> 
> Based off MCU stuff as well as a bit from the Deadpool and Spidey centric comics.
> 
> This is not anti-Cap! This is from the view of an upset 19-year-old, please take this into consideration while reading this.
> 
> I hope you enjoy :)

Tony Stark, with all his intelligence and hard-earned wisdom, took four years to figure out what was going on with his protégé-slash-intern-slash-child.

In his defense, the first couple years had been a crazy and horrible time for all parties involved and he didn't like to count those years as even existing.

If it were up to him, Peter would still be fifteen with the Vulture as the only real defeated threat beneath his belt, wouldn't have a psycho for a best friend ( _and who the fuck let Deadpool into New York? Didn't they have enough problems?_ ), and wouldn't be spending sleepless nights with Tony in the lab because of mutual nightmares.

Tough shit, life sucks, yadda yadda. Peter was nineteen and still yapped in the comms about memes and movies, only now Wilson was along to double the talk. Tony couldn't bring up anything about relationships without him blushing, he still wore ratty t-shirts with the worst puns imaginable, and he still took his sandwiches with extra pickles and flattened real good.

Tony knew Peter Parker pretty damn well if he did say so himself.

Which he did.

Which is why he was left wondering how on earth he didn't pick up on this little situation.

**Take #1:**

_When Peter is seventeen (almost eighteen, Peter likes to remind him) and the world has righted its wrongs and Tony has reunited the Avengers under new Accords (fina-fucking-ly), he calls him up with a mission._

_"Kiddo, I got a mission for you."_

_He's expecting the following flow of excitement and waits it out patiently. He freed up some time for this conversation. Pepper's icy stare for missing out on another meeting is forgotten in the warm feeling of chatting with his apprentice._

_He's still working on what their relationship is, exactly._

_"Who are we going with?" Peter_ _asks after his excitement dwindles to a heightened heart rate (Friday supplies through the watch he gifted Peter on his last birthday) and bouncing on his toes (Karen supplies as Peter is hurrying into his suit)._

_"I can't make it to this one, bud. It's you, Cap, Nat, and the clearly inferior bug guy."_

_"Not a bug, Mr. Stark, but I accept the compliment with dignity." Peter doesn't know that Tony is currently staring at his vitals on a hologram._

_"Sure, kiddo. So? See you in ten?"_

_There's a pause and Tony can see his vitals change. Friday informs him that his heart rate is still elevated, but Karen indicates a sudden lack of movement and unease from the other end._

_"I, uh, don't think I can make it today, Mr. Stark. I totally forgot I promised Aunt May I'd have dinner with her... Is that okay?" Peter asks, uncertain._

_Peter is the world's worst liar. Every word is strained and awkward._

_Tony's a little glad that nothing will get by him when it comes to the self-sacrificing hero, but at the same time slightly exasperated that Peter is literally never going to get away with anything which is part of being a teenager. The pros clearly outweighed the cons on this one._

_"Are you sure? You can have date night with your unusually attractive aunt at any time. This is Captain America and Black Widow I'm talking about here. Private mission; lots of stuff to learn. Peak your interest?"_

_"Sorry, Mr. Stark, I promised her. You know I don't break a promise."_

_At least that much wasn't a lie._

_"Alright, suit yourself. Don't come crying to me when you realize you missed some solo time with the Capsicle."_

_"Pretty sure I'll survive. I'll see you tomorrow for lab time?"_

_"Yeah, yeah. Enjoy dinner. Don't let her bully you into eating her cooking."_

_Peter's laugh was completely normal as they ended the call._

**Take #2:**

_"Got a mission for our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man."_

_"Ooh! Where are we going, Mr. Stark?"_

_"You're off to visit our northern friends. They need a hand with this lake-monster thing with laser eyes. I don't have all that many details. We're not really worried about it, since there aren't any civs in the area, but they wanted our help so here we are. I thought you might like to get a mission with our resident old man and ginger ninja without me tagging along to make you look uncool. What do you think?"_

_"Um, I don't know, Mr. Stark. I have a lot of homework to get done, so if you think they could handle it, maybe a raincheck?"_

_Excitement and then lies._

**Take #3:**

_"Alright, Wanda, Vision; flank left. Ant-Man, Clint; go round back and try to find some openings for us. Nat, Spider-Man, you're with me. We'll flank the left. Tony, we leave you the skies. Think you can make a good distraction?"_

_"Always, old man."_

_Peter always has things to say, even when things are serious and it's completely inappropriate, but during the debriefing, he's oddly quiet. It's only at that point does he speak up._

_"I think I should go with Mr. Stark," he says, meeting Steve's steady gaze with his own, "he'll be vulnerable up there if something happens he should have some backup."_

_Tony doesn't speak goody-two-shoes and has no idea what's said in the silence between them, but as odd as Peter's silence is, Steve's easy acceptance is even odder._

_Well, equally odd, at least._

_"That's reasonable. You and Tony will go up and distract them. Everyone good on their roles?"_

_The team nods. No one questions Peter's statement._

_Everyone knows Tony's his favourite (because duh) and don't think twice about him wanting to watch his back. They tend to do that whenever they're on missions together. Keeping an eye out for each other, one a helicopter-mentor (not parent, shut up Rhodey) and the other a superhero with a heart too big for his tiny body._

_Tony didn't think much of it either._

**Take #12:**

_"Ned just got a new Lego set, and I promised to spend the weekend with him... Is it okay?"_

_"Of course, kiddie."_

_If Tony said no the kid would relent. He wouldn't do that to him._

**Take #34:**

_"I should go with Mr. Barton, I can build an awesome web trap."_

_"Jesus Christ, kid, stop with the Mister-"_

_"That sounds good, Spider-Man." Steve agrees to the change of plans smoothly._

**Take #57:**

_"Got time tonight to hang out with Cap and Wanda? They're off on recon at dusk."_

_"Sorry, Mr. Stark, I've got plans with Wade... Is that okay?"_

Take number 57 was today.

After another failed attempt to send Peter on a mission with anyone that wasn't himself, he had Friday review all past examples.

Several hours of digging through footage and audio files later, Tony wanted to slap himself.

For a while, he had thought the kid was getting co-dependent. Tony was his mentor in all things superhero and somehow also occasionally life lessons. It wasn't shocking that he would latch onto him during mission time and would avoid the others who were practically strangers to him.

They were a bit much to handle for anyone who didn't know them well.

Despite that, Tony was trying desperately to get him to spend some time with the other's since they were his teammates (even if he wasn't an official Avengers). Mostly though, he wanted Peter to go on a few missions with dear old Captain America. Mister Righteous himself.

Anyone with a brain could tell that the two superheroes were on the same wavelength when it came to morals and justice. They had their hearts on their sleeves and self-sacrificing tendencies that made Tony want to lock them into padded rooms until they learned to hate the world just enough to be a little less kind.

Tony wondered if given time to process everything, Peter might have taken Steve Rogers' side of the battlefield in Germany.

Peter could learn a lot from Steve that he wouldn't learn from Tony, as much as he considered himself the superior superhero.

(Whenever Peter wanted to annoy him or was having an angsty teenage brooding session, he would offhandedly mention how _cool_ one of the other Avenger's was, even going so far as to include Ant-Man. He only now realized that Captain America never made that list.)

Apparently, what Tony had been missing all these years was not that Peter was co-depend and didn't want to play with others.

It was that Peter did not like Captain America.

How that was possible? Tony didn't know. And it was _killing_ him.

It was a mystery though, and he was going to solve it.

By calling Peter's insane best friend ( _Spider-Man's_ best friend, because Ned was Peter's best friend. Tony much preferred Ned).

Tony whole-heartedly disapproved of Peter's weird friendship with Wade Wilson, AKA a complete psychopath who also went under the name Deadpool. The guy showed up in New York about ten months earlier with a huge crush on Spider-Man, katana's strapped to his back, and a mile-long list of reasons why Tony did not want him in his city.

But Peter, and his stupid kindness, somehow 'got to know' Deadpool, ( _"I got to know him, Mr. Stark. We talked a lot and he really seems to want to do better." "And this has nothing to do with his creepy crush on you?" "Mr. Stark! That's all just jokes!"_ ) and wanted to keep him around. Against the wishes of all the Avengers.

That had started one argument Tony didn't want to revisit.

No, this was about calling Wade Wilson for some dirt.

_Calling 'Why Do I have This Number'..._

Tony needed to change that.

The line picked up with an audible gasp, "is Irondad calling lil' ol' me?" Wade asked in a high pitched southern accent.

He sighed.

"Wilson, I have a couple questions for you."

"Yes, my dear future father-in-law?"

"Got any plans with Spider-Man tonight?" Tony had learned to keep it brief with Wade if only to save his own sanity. Whatever was left of it after dealing with acts-firsts-thinks-second-Peter-Parker for years.

"None that you'd approve of," he giggled, "but those are only in my head. No plans with the real Spidey. Oooh, do you need us for a mission? That would be sweet as fuck! I am _so_ down for chopping things into bits and pieces."

"No, Wilson, no mission. Next question. Have you and Spider-Man ever talked about Cap before?"

That seemed to startle him for a proper second as there was a pause which rarely happened with Deadpool.

(Tony ignored the fact that he understood why Peter liked him so much when Wade was the only person that could match him quip for quip literally all of the time.)

"Who hasn't talked about that lovely hunk of a man at some point?" He joked, "Is he interested in a threesome and using you as the middleman? Because I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure it's weird to ask your dad-"

"Shut up, Wilson," Tony snapped, feeling his temper rise. He took a deep breath. Peter talked when he wasn't sure what to say, Wade was not so different. He had learned to enjoy Peter's rambling, he could endure this for a couple of minutes. "Next question. What has Spider-Man said about Captain America?"

"What's the third degree for about Captain Sexy? If Spidey's looking to ditch me for him... I'll get it, to be honest, but I will be terribly upset and will need your nice shiny armored shoulder to cry on."

Another deep breath.

"No, he's not - just answer the question."

Wade huffed, "Fine. Um... He doesn't have much to say about the dear old Captain. Come to think of it, anytime I bring it up he starts talking about _Golden Girls_. And I know he uses that only when he wants to distract me, but fuck man, it works every time. Like, that show is a work of art-"

"Not now, Wilson. Back to what's important. Would you have any guesses as to why he might not like Cap?"

"What do you mean? Who doesn't like Captain Fucking America?"

"Spider-Man, apparently," Tony mumbles, a hint of self-deprecation in his tone. It hurt his pride that it took him four years to figure it out.

"That sounds like fake news, but okay."

"No ideas then?"

"Nada. Unless he's jelly of my admiration of Cap's amazing abs.. and ass, and hair, and everything else. But he knows he's my number one, doesn't he? Oh no, have I broken his poor Spidey heart?" A gasp.

Tony sighs in despair, "Don't get your hopes up, this has nothing to do with you. It started before you were even in the picture."

"Fine, crush my dreams, see if I care. Now that you got your questions answered, it's my turn. What brought this on? If you're being an overbearing dad again, you know I'm gonna have to tell Spidey on you and he's gonna yell at you again and it's going to be amaze-balls!"

That lovely memory Tony didn't want to revisit. Thanks, Wade.

"Like a good mentor-"

Wade very obviously fake coughed out "dad".

Tony soldiered on, "I wanted to send him on a mission with Steve so they could bond over being equally righteous, but he said he couldn't because he had plans with you. I've been getting similar excuses for the past few years."

"Huh. That _is_ weird. He's a terrible liar and he knows it; why haven't you called him out on it yet?"

"Couldn't figure out why he'd be lying in the first place," he admitted because, for all his numerous (and he means _numerous_ ) flaws, Wade genuinely seemed to care about Spider-Man and has watched his back when Tony couldn't. If anyone could be his teammate on this mission, it was Deadpool.

"Alright, daddio, I'll see what I can do. If I Sherlock Holmes this bitch, will this finally put me in your good books?"

An exasperated sigh later, "I'm not as easy to impress as Spider-Man, Wilson. Try harder."

It was amusing how badly Wade wanted his approval. Tony was pretty damn sure he was never going to get it. Besides, if Peter had any returning interest, surely he'd have told Tony by now?

Maybe? Apparently, he kept secrets even from Tony.

Tough shit, life sucks, yadda yadda.

He hung up on Wade and turned back to the video files on his computer. He watched them over, hoping for any clues that would help him solve this mystery.

**OoOoO**

"Wade, you decent?" Peter slipped in through the window in full costume as always. As someone who thought of himself as normal, he'd typically use the front door. Nothing about Wade was normal and so his front door was blocked off by a wooden plank screwed across its center because reasons.

"I don't have to be!" Came the predictable response from the bedroom.

It had happened more than once to walk in with Wade in less than appropriate clothing choices which included nudity and gorefests. He was almost pretty sure that he wasn't even doing it on purpose either and Peter had gotten into the habit of announcing himself whenever he was arriving unexpectedly.

Peter slipped onto the worn out flower patterned sofa and grabbed the Playstation controller from the coffee table. He kicked up his feet, unpaused the game, and resumed where Wade had left off.

"Don't get me killed!" Wade shouted.

"Easier said than done!" He shouted back.

They had an easy thing going on between them, something that Tony and the other Avengers couldn't seem to wrap their minds around. Peter wouldn't trade it for anything, no matter how frustrating Wade could be at times.

"Yoo, Spidey-babe. You will _not_ believe the day I've had!"

Wade stepped into the room dressed in civvies, sweatpants and a grey hoodie, and headed to the fridge to grab them some energy drinks before flopping on the couch next to him. He opened Peter's drink for him and set it on the table where he could absentmindedly grab it for a sip in slow parts of the game.

He went on about his day; the amazing chocolate chip pancakes he made for breakfast, the contract he was going to accept from a supposedly reliable source who ended up stabbing him in the back (literally), and then the new spicy tacorrito from Taco Bell that made him want to cut out his own stomach.

"And just like, a half hour ago I get a call from Irondad!"

Peter was pretty good at half-listening to Wade, not really needing to give him his full attention to get a grasp of what he was saying, but at the mention of his mentor he paused the game and turned to him with a frown.

"You got a call from Mr. Stark? For what?"

Tony hated Wade. It couldn't have been good.

"Weeell..." Wade was trying to tease as if he wasn't going to tell, but they both knew he wasn't very good at keeping things from him. "Would you believe me if I said I finally got his blessing to make you a real man?"

Peter was glad his blush was hidden by the mask. He'd never get used to someone so blatantly flirting with him.

"Shut up, Wade. What did he say, for real?"

"Someone's been caught in a little white lie," Wade singsonged, grinning his way.

Peter caught on instantly and his gaze fell to his lap, "Oh. That."

"Apparently we had plans tonight that Irondad was aware of, but not me? Frankly, I'm insulted. Do you think I have nothing better to do than sit around here waiting for your gorgeous ass to climb through my window?"

"Yes?" Peter supplied innocently.

He knew Wade was busy, but he'd returned from a two-week long mission overseas a few days ago and he was often one to take a few days to veg after time away. After lying to Mr. Stark about his whereabouts, he knew he'd feel less guilty if it became the truth and had quickly made his way to Wade's place for company.

"Always for you, my baby boy. So? Why did you tell pops you were here instead of going on some awesome mission with the Avengers?"

"If I said I just wasn't up for it, would you drop it?"

"Nope," Wade popped the 'p' and pat his thigh comfortingly, "So, he's under this weird impression that you don't like Captain America or something. That's weird, right? I mean. Captain America. The nations hero, hunk of the century, man with the shield, sex in spandex, and all that jazz."

Peter rolled his eyes; not visible beneath the mask but Wade knew him well enough to know it was there.

"It's..." Peter sighed, "It's dumb. Wanna get some food? I kinda want pizza. Maybe from Super Duper Pizza, that place was awesome. That thing had enough cheese to clog every artery in my body and I have a dire need to make that a reality. What do you say?"

"I say you're terrible at changing the topic. But obviously, I'm okay with pizza. Hawaiian? With bacon?" Wade was already pulling out his phone to place their order through an online food delivery service.

"Wouldn't you rather be all sleuth about it? Try to figure out how on earth can someone not like the amazing and fantastic Captain America? Is Spider-Man insane, is he secretly an alien, how can he be so defective?" Peter's voice was dripping with sarcasm and annoyance.

It felt like something he must have said before, but Wade didn't know who he could have spoken to about this. Wade didn't know about Ned, the other best friend. The friend who'd been there to see Peter go from worshipping Steve Rogers to what he felt now.

"Me and Irondouche are in a competition to see who can figure it out first. He's sleuthy, I prefer to be direct."

Peter stared up at the ceiling with a clear sense of exasperation, "Why are you both like this?" It was a rhetorical question and Wade didn't say anything. "Let's wait for the food then head to the roof, okay?"

"Sure, anything for you pumpkin."

Wade was surprisingly patient when he chose to be and Peter appreciated it. He continued on with the game until their food arrived a half hour later. Two extra large pizzas and a two-liter bottle of Root Beer; a perfect Saturday evening.

They took the fire escape to the roof and settled on the rough cement with the food surrounding them. Peter didn't talk right away as they were both much more invested in eating, and it was only after finishing the rest of the soda and wiping away his mouth did Wade turn to him with a one word question on his lips.

"So?"

With his mask still up to his nose to free his mouth for eating, Wade clearly saw the pursed lips of distaste.

"It's dumb."

"There isn't a single dumb thing about you, baby boy." Wade threw their trash over the side of the building and Peter lazily shot webs to launch them into the nearest garbage bin. Spider-Man did not condone littering.

"The reason it's dumb is because it has nothing to do with me. I shouldn't be bothered by it, but I am. And that's stupid."

"Fake news, but okay."

His lips curled into a smile.

Peter laid back against the cold roof and Wade stretched out beside him. He looked up at the starless sky and readied to share something he hadn't spoken about in years. He wanted to mention his fear of changing Wade's opinion of Steve Rogers, but he didn't want to assume he had enough influence to do so and chose not to bring it up.

"Do you remember the stuff that happened with the Accords a few years ago? The fight between Mr. Stark and Captain Rogers about them?"

"Oh yeah, the media called it an Avengers Civil War, right? That bullshit?"

"Yeah. That. And that's when I first met Mr. Stark. He gave me this new suit and brought me to Germany to fight with him because he needed some help. I don't know if you know anything about that? It should have been around the time you got your abilities."

"Nah, I only know what was in the news. Was a bit distracted with other shit."

Peter hummed in acknowledgment. He'd been surprised when Wade had opened up about what he'd been through, assuming he'd be extremely private about it, but there wasn't much he seemed to hide from him. It was flattering, albeit sometimes a little much when he insisted on sharing everything. There were some things Peter didn't need to know.

"Well, I pretty much got my ass handed to me. Though I did steal Captain America's shield and kicked him in the face, which was pretty fucking awesome."

"Fuck yeah!"

Peter blindly reached out and met his high five.

"I only got bits and pieces of what happened next from eavesdropping and context clues, but I got the jist of it. Mr. Stark fought against Captain Rogers and Sergeant Barnes. And I'm not stupid, I know Mr. Stark was just as involved in the fight as the other two, but..."

"What happened?" Wade prompted.

"They hurt him. Pretty badly, from what I gathered. I understand that he gave as good as he got, but there's a limit, you know? His suit was wrecked and they left him there, in the middle of nowhere with no way to track him. He could have died and they just abandoned him!" His voice raised as memories came back to him.

Tony had tried to keep it from him. He often forgot just how good his hearing was as he spoke to Pepper in another other room, his tone of voice indicative of his hurt pride and feelings. He pretended to be fine, physically and mentally, but Peter could see the limping and the quiver in his left hand for days after.

Weeks, even.

As time went on and he grew closer to Tony, his own anger only increased. Because this selfless, generous, asshole is the person that Captain America knew and abandoned? No matter how much he thought over the events of that day, he could find no perspective where his actions were acceptable.

"I get it; Mr. Stark has a lot of layers and he can be a bit of a shit sometimes, he wasn't great with me at the start, but he tries and learns and he's one of the best people I know. And I just..." Peter sighs.

He didn't realize his fingers had curled into tight fists by his sides. He uncurled them and entwined his hands over his stomach.

"I'm not the person that was hurt, I wasn't even there, but what happened isn't okay and it pisses me off that Mr. Stark let it go. That he can share his home with him."

"He hurt you by hurting someone you love. That's not dumb," Wade said after a moment of silence has passed between them. "What happened wasn't cool, but maybe there's more to it than you know?"

"I don't need to know more!" He protested, "Being able to do that to someone you supposedly care about is... it's... it's bullshit! I could never do that to you and I know you wouldn't do that to me. That's what it means to be friends with someone. You don't go around kicking their ass then leaving them to fend for themselves in the middle of fucking nowhere."

He felt bad for snapping, but it was Wade's fault for asking in the first place.

"I didn't mean about that. I meant since then. Maybe they've talked it out or something? I don't know. This sounds like something you should talk to Stark about."

"He's going to tell me to get over it, and maybe it's selfish but I don't know that I'm ready to get over it. Someone needs to be angry about it and if he won't do it then I will." Peter sighs, "Besides, he's been trying to get me and Captain Rogers to spend time together since forever because he thinks we'd make the perfect BFF's or something. This would only encourage that and I can only think up so many excuses."

"I don't know about that. I think he'd understand."

"Nah, I think this one's on me. Do you mind losing your weird bet with my mentor?"

"Weeell... I suppose I can make the sacrifice. Just this once."

"Thanks, Wade."

**OoOoO**

Two months later, Peter was given no choice.

Wade hadn't told Tony the truth and Tony hadn't managed to figure it out for himself. When he called Peter with a mission, he gave him no way out; and it wasn't even on purpose.

"I'm taking care of some business in the middle of fucking Argentina because Pepper insisted it would be good for me. Relaxing or some bullshit between meetings. I'm not going to make it in time and we need all hands on deck. Nat, Rhodes, and Cap are on site already, but they're struggling. I put Wilson on a jet to come pick you up. Not gonna miss any tests are you?"

There were no excuses for this one and Peter pulled his suit from its hiding place.

"I can make it, no worries. I'll shoot him a text to know where to pick me up." At least Wade would be there. And Rhodey - if, per Wade's insinuations, Tony was his father figure, Rhodey was the weird uncle with all the really cool stories.

"Everyone else is unreachable or too far away, so you're on your own for this one. I'm canceling everything and making my way, I'll be there as soon as I can. Karen will keep me posted on what's going on."

"Sounds good, Mr. Stark."

Peter texted Wade the best pickup point for a jet. Their call switched from his phone to the suit as he pulled it on and they discussed the mission until Peter made it to where he needed to be.

Apparently, the fight was in some base in New Jersey; a lot of enemies and some sort of slug thing that may have been created in a lab. Tony had gotten limited information from the fighting Avengers.

"Wade's here, I'll talk to you later."

"Alright, take care, kiddo."

The jet landed in the only open field near his campus, which also happened to be the football field. Students stared in awe as Spider-Man swung onto the jet and continued to stare as it flew off as quickly as it had arrived. That was the sort of thing that never really became normal.

Peter was a little surprised that Tony would willingly let Wade on one of his jet's, let alone fly it solo. Stranger things had happened though, and it seemed they were needed. His stomach swooped at the thought of fighting alongside Captain America without his mentor present. Wade met him with a warm greeting and a tight hug despite his protests.

"Don't worry, Spidey-baby. I got your back."

"I know you do."

Wade settled behind the console and Peter took the seat next to him, watching the screens in front of him. Not long after learning how to drive a car he had gotten some lessons on the basic controls of the jet, but unlike the car, Tony hadn't quite managed to brave letting him operate it on his own yet.

Usually, he'd ask, but Wade would actually say yes and that was a disaster waiting to happen.

"This is gonna suck," he said.

Wade neither agreed or disagreed.

Instead, he changed the topic into something light, asking about movies and video games; things that they could talk about for hours. The flight to New Jersey in the Starkjet was quick and with Wade's presence, it was easy to ignore the dread building up in the pit of his stomach.

"Here we go, baby boy. Let's kick some evil ass!" Wade landed next to another jet that must have been brought there by the Avengers.

They stepped out and took in the disaster before them. A large building had been destroyed, its floors crashed down into the floors below them, debris littering a wide area, and an array of mismatched weapon remains were scattered around. Peter could spot bullets, ropes, used Widow Bites, and fallen men without needing to step any closer.

"Think we're too late?" Wade asked.

From their position, it looked like a finished battle, but with his enhanced hearing Peter could easily still hear the sounds of fighting.

"It's not over yet," Peter told him and gestured for him to follow.

Through the rubble, they found what was left of an elevator shaft that certainly used to lead up, but showed far too many underground floors for what should have been a regular old office building.

"Can you hear that?"

"Oh, yeah, I can hear that."

They peered over the edge of the shaft and stared down into the abyss. It was dark, but the sounds of the battle met their ears. Peter picked up on some gunshots and shouting, but there were definitely some things he couldn't identify. Something akin to squeezing a squishy ball he assumed might be the slug creature thing.

Peter grabbed the back of Wade's suit to keep him from leaping into the hole.

"How about you don't break every bone in your body before we join a fight?"

Wade giggled, "are you going to give me a piggy back ride?"

Peter pulled him into a fireman carry, hoped he wouldn't touch his butt, and launched a web to the wall before lowering them down the shaft. It was a long way down and the further they went the louder the noises became. Before his feet could touch down, his spidey sense tingled and Peter clung to the wall a few meters over the ground.

Where they would have been, the creature crashed through the elevator entrance and with sharp teeth dug right through the opposing foundation. It created its own exit and as quickly as it had appeared it was gone.

The pair stared down in silence for a moment.

"What the fuck?" Wade elegantly stated.

"I second that."

The sound of the creature eating its way through the cement walls and the dirt beyond them was loud and unnerving.

Peter released the web and landed quietly on his feet. He put Wade down and the two stepped through the widened elevator doorway. The Avengers present were scattered throughout the area. The floors had caved in much as they had above ground and they were perched on various levels.

Steve was on the bottom floor, attempting to fight toe-to-toe with the beast, Natasha was a floor above with her guns and tazer at the ready, and Rhodey was flying high with his blasters poised to shoot it as soon as it emerged from the ground again.

There were holes in the walls all over the open area and a handful of people in lab coats were unconscious and pushed aside clumsily to keep them out of harm's way.

Peter and Wade found their own spots amongst the chaos and began to help as much as they could. Peter was sure to keep by his friend or Rhodey as much as possible.

"Good to see you Spider-Man! You too, Deadpool. We could really use your help." Steve greeted them cheerfully despite the situation around them.

"Howdy Captain Sexy!" Wade answered with great enthusiasm, enough so that Peter's silence went unnoticed.

They were patched into the team comms and their numbers changed from three to five. The giant slug-like creature was challenging; its skin was thick and impervious to bullets and blades.

Natasha confirmed the previous suspicions that the scientists had built it in this lab likely with intentions to utilize it as a weapon. It mostly appeared to have a hunger for dirt, not blood, but it didn't seem to have any higher thinking power and there wasn't any choice other than to kill it. That was proving difficult.

"Swords no good, Deadpool?" Rhodey asked from above.

Wade tried to stab one of his katana's into the creature's side, but it couldn't pierce the flesh and it quickly, quicker than its size and weight should allow, hit Wade with its backside launching him across the room, his weapons falling from his grip.

"Katanas!" Wade corrected, "And no, nothing. I've got a grenade-"

" _Why_?" Rhodey interrupted, but Wade ignored the question as Peter pressed on.

"That might work. Don't get eaten."

Peter wasn't concerned by how easily he could follow Wade's train of thought, not even noticing that the other's hadn't caught on to the plan.

He launched himself up and in direct sight of the creature, doing his best to get it to open its enormous jaw so that Wade could throw his grenade into the opening.

Unsurprising to Peter, Steve became a hindrance to their plan by slamming into the side of the creature and shoving it aside in a formidable show of strength. It was obviously to prevent Peter from dangling dangerously above its open jaw; a move of protection ingrained in his thought process, but Peter huffed in annoyance.

Wade's grenade, thrown the instant an opening had presented itself, now missed its mark and fell with a bounce on the floor.

Everyone had to jump out of the way of the ensuing explosion that didn't even bother the slug as its head followed Peter by smell. It didn't have eyes and he assumed it was using scent and sound as it was unusually good at aiming its jaw exactly where it needed to be.

Being the youngest in a group of super-powered or super awesome warriors meant he was often the target of their over-protectiveness. Aside from general irritation, Peter had grown used to it. Wade was typically the only exception from this, leaving him to his own devices and trusting him to protect himself.

This was the exception to the exception it seemed.

After the creature had recouped from being thrown aside by Captain America, it only seemed to grow angrier and thrashed around. Debris fell from the upper levels as the floors shook from its weight.

Peter landed on the ground and focused on keeping his balance.

It swiftly turned to him as he was the nearest target and launched forward. Its jaw was impressively large, seeing it so close.

Wade, Peter's favourite loveable idiot, pushed him aside and somehow ended up the creature's dinner. Peter would have been a little more frightened if he couldn't hear Wade's yelling through its digestive tract.

"What the hell, Wade!" Peter shouted in frustration.

"...Did Wilson just get himself eaten by a worm?" Peter heard Tony ask through his suit. He wasn't patched in the team comms but was keeping an eye on the situation through the video feed on his suit. This current development couldn't go by without a comment.

Peter huffed, "Yeah, he did. Hey, Karen? Can you ask Friday for Mr. Stark's vitals?"

"Excuse me, Spider-Boy? What does that-"

Karen cut off Tony, "Mr. Stark currently has an elevated heart rate and is showing signs of distress, but is otherwise perfectly healthy."

"Thanks, Karen, you're the best. No,w don't we think that cutting off visuals and audio would be imperative to Mr. Stark's health? Clearly, this is only causing him stress."

Peter climbed the wall to the next floor up to get a bit of distance between himself and the slug. Although worm seemed more fitting of a descriptor for it. He could still hear Wade's voice, and that was a comforting thought. His comm was down, but his voice travelled far. Peter wouldn't want to be the one resting in some monster's stomach waiting for rescue, but Wade would probably make a joke of it later.

"Hold up now! I'm just keeping an eye on things."

"My apologies, sir, but Mr. Parker has made a valid point. Shutting down visual and audio feeds."

"Karen, don't you-"

He'd be lying if he said he didn't appreciate the worrying, but he didn't need Tony watching his every move. Not only was it a tad creepy, it was unnecessary.

"Anyone got thoughts on how to cut this thing down?" He asked once Karen had reconnected him to the team comms, "Wade won't survive in there for long."

"Sorry, Spider-Man, we're at a loss," Natasha replied.

She didn't sound nearly as apologetic as he'd like, what with his friend in there _dying_. If it were anyone else there would be far more sympathy for the situation.

"We can't fight it like this."

Rhodey picked up Captain America and carried him to the ledge above for them to gather and talk. The worm thing stayed on the ground floor, muching on debris. It didn't appear to be an angry creature and was more than happy to be left alone.

Peter didn't want to kill it, but it had just shown it was perfectly fine with eating people and he didn't know of any cage that would be able to contain it. Not that that was much of a life to begin with.

"I have-" Peter started, but was interrupted.

"We should retreat for now and come back with more firepower," Steve said calmly.

Everyone's nonchalance was grating his nerves. Steve's especially, but that wasn't anything new. Upon being interrupted and then hearing his words, Peter snapped and his mouth moved before his brain could catch up.

"No way in Hell are we retreating! Wade's in there, we can't just abandon him! He needs our help!" His voice echoed across the room and the creature's head moved in an agitated manner at the loud noise.

"I understand, Spider-Man, but-"

"No, I really don't think you do, _Steve_ ," Peter had never been anything less than polite to the Avengers, and his words spoken in such an acidic tone made them all stare at him in confusion and worry. He pressed on, "That's my friend down there, and if you're asking me to leave him behind than tough shit. I don't abandon my friends."

_Unlike you._

Upset and shaking from a foreign rage, Peter turned from the gaping Avengers and dove off the ledge and back into the fray without a second thought.

He had a plan and he was sticking to it. He didn't need anyone else's help.

With a well shot web, he tugged one of Wade's dropped katana's into his hand and swung around the room to get the thing's attention. Eventually, it moved its head towards him and he expertly evaded it until it would provide him the opening he needed.

"Karen, any way you can get me through to Wade? His comm seems to be down."

"I'm sorry, Peter, but I can't get any reception from his end."

He'd have to communicate with him in a more dangerous way then.

As the creature reared up with its mouth open, Peter threw the katana down its throat and let himself fall into the open space.

"Spider-Man!" He heard Rhodey shout through the comms.

"I'm fine!" The jaw shut around him, but his hand remained affixed to the back of one of its sharp teeth and he dangled inside its mouth. It had three rows of crazily sharp teeth, perfect for tearing through walls and dirt, and its tongue was enormous and dirty. It smelled putrid. "Karen, activate air filtration."

"Air filtration activated."

That was better.

"I'll be out in a sec, Mr. Rhodes," he said, hearing the repulsors of his suit near the thing's mouth but knew he would keep his distance until Peter called for him. At least he trusted his plans.

"Wade!" He aimed his shout towards its throat, hoping the echo would travel down to its stomach where he prayed his friend was still alive.

"Spidey!" An excited voice reached out to him.

"I threw down your sword, try to cut your way out with that. Its skin should be more pervious to damage from the inside."

There was a moment of silence and then, "I got her, but... I don't see this working out, baby boy."

Peter frowned.

"I'm on my way!"

His hands tended to stick to everything, he hadn't yet found a surface he couldn't stick to, but he didn't want to take any unecessary risks in this situation. He stuck a web to the back of a tooth and slowly used it to descend past the creature's throat.

The thing was evidently unhappy with the still-living food that was travelling inside of it and was thrashing around. Peter's fingers tightened around his web and tried to keep steady. This was definitely the grossest thing he'd ever done.

He slipped down the esophagus without mishap; it tightened around the web but it was too strong to break. It was a long way to the stomach, but once he got there he was once more grateful for the air filtration.

There were half digested bodies and all sorts of miscellaneous things (stomach acid was making its way through it and it was difficult to make out what the different lumps were) and Wade was sitting atop one of said things with his katana in hand. And with two missing legs.

"Why..." He was going to ask but didn't want to know what Wade had been up to since being swallowed by a worm. "Hey, nice going with the whole getting eaten thing. I give it a solid ten out of ten on the stupid scale."

He could feel Wade's pout, "I didn't want _you_ getting eaten."

Peter sighed, "Alright, let's get us both out of here."

He surveyed the stomach's inner lining and let his AI gather data. His guess had been correct, the sword should easily pierce it. The only problem was how to go about it.

He didn't want to abandon the secure web line, and decided to use it instead of risking another shot. He reached the object Wade was sitting on and stepped on it.

"We could climb out through the mouth, but if we get a few solid hits in from here it should kill this thing."

"Sounds good to me!" Wade moved as if to stand, but Peter pushed him back down.

"Do you just not notice the fact that you're missing your legs, or...?" They were gone up to the thigh and were oozing blood but also already beginning to heal. "Come on, climb on my back. Think you can hold on with one hand and stab with the other?"

"I'd use my mouth if I had to, Spidey," Wade said with a laugh.

Peter believed that.

He hoisted him up on his back, and to be safe, wrapped a string of webbing around their waists to keep him in place. The object they were standing on was disintegrating in the stomach acid and there wasn't much room, but there was enough for a couple feet of running start before he jumped off with his hands clasped around his web line.

They rushed towards the wall and once close enough Peter placed his feet against it in hopes he would stick. It worked, and he angled his body to give Wade enough space to jab his katana into the weak flesh. The katana pierced right through as he'd hoped.

"Yes! Take that motherfucker!" Wade cheered in his ear.

The slug-worm-thing (Peter should have just given this thing a name) growled angrily and thrashed even more violently than earlier. It seemed to throw itself against the wall and Peter had to press a hand to its flesh for extra support to keep from being thrown off.

Slowly, he took steps all while Wade dragged his katana along, cutting through its stomach in one long line.

The further they got the louder and angrier the creature became and its death happened suddenly. Blood oozed from the wound and nearly halfway across its stomach it fell limp. It rolled and Peter kept a firm hand on the flesh and Wade. The stomach acid sloshed around, but they managed to keep a safe distance.

Wade pulled out his katana and they waited for a long moment. It didn't move again.

"I think this asshole's dead," Wade pointed out smartly.

"Everything looks good out here," Rhodey's voice came through the comm, "Good job, boys."

Peter debated the best way to get out of the thing's stomach, and chose what seemed the lesser of evils. With his feet firmly on the flesh and Wade strapped tight to his back, he released his web and dug his fingers into the wound. With his superstrength, he pulled the two halves apart until there was enough room for them to climb through.

It was disgusting, but at least Wade didn't seem to mind.

"Thanks for getting eaten just to save lil ol' me," he said with a southern accent.

"Yeah, yeah, don't make it a habit."

They made it to the outside world again and Peter jumped off the creature to land safely on the ground. He carefully removed the web holding them together and deposited his friend on the ground. He knelt next to him and looked him over.

His legs were already regrowing and the blood flow had stopped. The first time he'd seen his abilities firsthand he'd puked. Now, it was as familiar as his own webshooters.

"Well, doc, what's the news?" Wade joked.

"I'm sorry, sir, but it seems you have..." Peter pretended to remove a pair of glasses, "Idiosis, and it's fatal."

It was nice to see his friend laugh at his dumb joke, now assured he was alive and healing.

The sound of repulsors drew nearer and Peter turned to look at Rhodey as he landed near them.

"Hey, Mr. Rhodey!" He greeted him with his more typical optimism. He wasn't the person Peter was mad at.

"You did good in there, kid," he said kindly, "I'd offer my spare leg braces from the jet, but I figure you'll be right as rain before you even get there."

Wade shot him a thumbs up.

"I'll get him to our jet, do you think you could pilot it home for us? Mr. Stark doesn't trust me with it and my pilot can't reach the pedals anymore."

Rhodey smiled and rolled his eyes, "yeah, I've got you covered. Nat can call Shield for cleanup duty."

At this point, Natasha and Steve had managed to make their way down to them. Natasha didn't seem fazed by anything that had happened as was her default, but Steve's face was morphed into a cross between disappointment and confusion.

Peter stood to meet them, wishing once more that he was a little bit taller. Being intimidating in spandex was hard, and even harder when he barely reached the other guy's shoulders.

"Spider-Man," Steve started with a steady Captain-y tone.

Peter didn't appreciate it and sassed, "Yes, Steve?" It was difficult resisting the urge to cross his arms over his chest in a defensive move.

"I'm sorry if my suggestion to recoup upset you, I had no intention of leaving Deadpool behind. But that doesn't mean you can run off into a fight on your own. If you want to fight with the Avengers you need to work as a team."

"I wasn't upset; I was insulted that you would even suggest it. Do I have to remind you that I'm not an Avenger? I don't have to play by your rules."

His lips pressed into a tight line, and Peter basked in it.

Everyone else around them were startled into silence by the entire exchange, even Wade kept his mouth shut if only to see how it would play out.

"I've heard a lot of kind things about you from Tony, Spider-Man. I don't understand why you're behaving this way."

Which was the worst thing to say to an angry nineteen year old.

"Then maybe you should get your head out of your ass for a minute and listen to what somebody else is saying for once," he snapped.

Rhodey spoke up in the sudden quiet, "hey, kiddo, maybe we should..." he gestured towards the elevator shaft which would be their exit.

He was, unfortunately, ignored.

"Listen, I'm not trying to... You came here to join an Avengers mission that I was leading, that means you're to follow my orders whether you like them or not. Your friend would have been fine-"

Peter blanked for a second, but the next thing he knew was that Steve Rogers was holding a hand over his bloody nose with the most shocked look on his face and Natasha had quickly moved to his side. Rhodey stepped forward but seemed uncertain where he should be.

"Holy shit, baby boy!" Wade whooped from his spot on the floor.

His knuckles were sore and his glove was speckled with blood.

He wondered, for the briefest second, why Steve didn't dodge.

"We're leaving," it came out sounding rough.

Peter turned, picked up his friend, and stomped towards the elevator shaft where he was quick to web his way back to the top. Wade was always terrible at sensing the mood, or ignoring it, but for once he remained quiet if only to keep Peter from leaving him behind.

The jet door opened for them and he layed Wade down on one of the wall benches. He opened one of the overhead compartments to pull out a box of high protein granolas bars desighed specifically by Tony for the heros with fast metabolisms and handed it to his friend.

"Here, eat these. All of them."

Wade didn't hesitate in taking the box. He pulled up his mask and dug into the first of several granola bars. Now safely in the jet, Wade had no reservations about talking, "So that was literally the hottest thing I've ever seen in my life."

Peter took an audible deep breath as if to steady his emotions but said nothing.

"Are you alright? You're not usually the violent type." He'd never been punched in the face like that by Peter and even he'd admit that he'd deserve it.

"I don't know," he replied shortly.

War Machine wasn't a stealthy superhero and they easily heard him approach the jet and waited for him to join them.

"Howdy!" Wade greeted cheerfully, seeing as Peter was too engrossed in his own angst to be polite.

"Hey," he responded, but his gaze was glued on Peter.

Peter, in turn, refused to meet his gaze.

Rhodey took the hint. He stepped out of his suit, his leg braces whirring to life, and walked up to the console to fly the jet home without saying a word. His hands flew across the console as it hummed to life.

With nothing to occupy himself with, Peter approached Wade's bench where he lifted his head and sat down, laying him back over his lap. They were never really touchy-feely, but Wade wasn't going to complain. He let out a contented sigh and happily continued to munch on his food, the high protein nutrition what he needed to help sustain his regeneration.

Peter wanted his friend to feel his support, even if he couldn't bring himself to talk about it. He couldn't imagine how he'd feel if their supposed teammates had wanted to leave him behind because it was convenient. Wade wasn't always the brightest crayon in the box, but he wasn't dense enough not to have figured out the cause of the fight.

Not that he'd say anything about it to defend himself, because if Peter knew his friend he probably would have agreed with Steve's plan to leave him behind.

"Hey, Spider-Boy?" Rhodey called out from his spot at the pilot's seat.

"Yeah?" There was no convincing either Tony or Rhodey to call him anything that wasn't embarassing and he'd grown used to it.

"Tones will be waiting for us at the compound."

Peter groaned, "Any chance you can drop me off anywhere else?"

"No can do, kiddo. Sorry."

The back of his head hit the wall with a thunk. There was no way Tony didn't know everything that had happened and the radio silence from the suit was enough to know he was in a _lot_ of trouble.

"I'm sure daddy Stark isn't mad at you, baby boy." Wade tried to cheer him up, but it fell flat.

Peter placed a hand over Wade's eyes and shushed him, "get some rest, Wade. You've got legs to regrow."

His two thighs has grown back and his body was now working on the knees. Horrifying and fascinating all at once.

"Anything for you, cutie." By then Wade had finished his food and let the box fall to the floor. He was going to enjoy getting to rest on his Spidey's lap as long as he'd allow it.

It wasn't a long flight back to the compound, as much as he wished for some excuse to postpone facing Tony. He hated the disappointed look he'd get after Peter did something stupid and he'd only gotten better at it as the years went one. Peter was sure he was taking lessons from Aunt May on the sly. Jerks.

Rhodey landed the jet and with a tone that was too bright for Peter's dark mood, said, "We're here, boys. Now get off my ship."

"This is a plane, Colonel," Peter said with all his nineteen year old sass.

There was no verbal response from the war veteran, but Peter could sense the eyeroll.

During the flight, Wade had fallen asleep and was slowly gaining consciousness. Peter gently lifted his head from his lap and stood, stretching his limbs and letting feeling return to his legs.

"How you feeling?" He asked.

"I'm swell," Wade replied, a yawn escaping his lips.

Regeneration always took a lot out of him, though he tried to pretend it didn't around others. Rhodey must have the gold stamp for him to allow himself the luxury of lazy just-woken sluggishness.

"Let's get going, no point keeping Mr. Stark waiting."

Peter let Wade cling to his back like a monkey and exited the jet behind their pilot. His ears could pick up the sound of another jet approaching and quickened his pace not to have to see Captain America's face.

The elevator brought them down a couple of floors to the Avengers common room. It was no surprise that when the doors opened Tony was standing there waiting for them.

"And everyone makes it home alive, congratulations," he clapped his hands slowly for a moment then turned a stern gaze to Peter, "Seems we have some chatting to do."

There was never a moment wasted when it came to Tony Stark and Peter had expected no different. For the moment he didn't respond. The elevator opened up to the living room, and he stepped past his mentor further into the room and gently placed his friend on the nearest sofa.

Rhodey took his own seat, tired and in no mood to partake in the following exchange. Trying to play referee between them was as pointless as rules in gym class.

"I know I fucked up, Mr. Stark, but I'm not sorry," Peter said defensively, turning back to Tony and crossing his arms over his chest.

It was these kind of moments where Tony felt his age; when the exasperation and confusion that came with dealing with children made him sigh.

"I know you aren't, kid," Tony huffed with a surpressed laugh, "But let me get my facts straight here. If I saw correctly, you punched Steve in the face because he had a plan you didn't agree with. Is that right?"

"That's a butchered version of it, but sure. That's about it."

"How about you tell me the full version then," Tony prompted.

"Can we talk later? I should get Wade home, and I have some studying to do-"

"Not happening. Sorry. You want me to treat you like a grown up? Well, I've been told it's a grown up thing to talk these things through so we're going to talk. What happened? And don't think I don't know about this whole issue you've got with Rogers. I don't know why you don't like him, but if you're at the point where you're getting violent, I think it's time I know exactly what's going on."

Peter's lips pursed, but he stayed silent. The elevator was moving.

Tony rubbed an agitated hand over his face, palm brushing over his goatee. Having a child was a pain in the ass. As he was preparing to talk again since Peter clearly wasn't going to, the elevator doors opened behind him and he turned to the newcomers.

Steve and Natasha joined them in silence. Steve's face was perfectly healed and no worse for wear. The bitter part of Peter wanted to try again, see how long the bruise would last.

"Hey," Tony greeted them, ever the gracious host.

"Hello, Tony," Steve returned the greeting.

Natasha nodded once in acknowledgment of his presence and then she found her own spot on the sofa near Rhodey to watch in silence.

They were a few people in the room now, but the air was tense and none of them wanted to be the one to break the silence.

Peter was always the one to crack first.

"I'm not apologizing," he said to Tony, not even sparing the Captain a glance.

"I know." Tony wouldn't force a disingenuous apology when it wouldn't solve the issue in the first place.

"Tony, you can't possibly approve-"

"Of course not, Cap."

"Maybe you should mind your own goddamn business," Peter snapped.

It hurt to see the stress he was putting on his mentor when that was the last thing he wanted, but he couldn't stop himself. The words escaped before he could think them through or think of their consequences. Years of pent up rage was finally finding an excuse for release and there was no end in sight.

"Pete - shit. Sorry. Spider-Man." Tony lost his train of thought after his verbal mishap and his gaze trailed to Deadpool behind him. It was the first time it had happened, Tony was usually so careful, but the strain of the current events had broken his focus.

Of all the people in the room, Wade was the only one who didn't know his true identity. It was at that moment that he realized the unfairness of that fact.

"It's okay, Mr. Stark. If anyone should know my name it's one of the few people in this room I would actually trust with my life." Peter, in a show of defiance, swiftly tugged off his mask, letting his brown curls fall loose around his reddened face.

"Woah, woah, time out!" Wade hoisted himself into a near-seated position with his hands in a 'T' position, "How old are you?"

Peter looked at him over his shoulder and smiled softly, "Nineteen, legal before we ever met. You're alright."

"Phew," Wade flopped back on the sofa, "You can continue now."

"Peter," Tony drew back his attention. He sounded defeated, accepting they were now at the point of no return, "I know you're upset, but you can't just - you wanted to keep your identity a secret for a reason."

Tony had more grey in his hair than when Peter had first met him, and more laughter lines around his mouth and crows feet by his eyes, and he'd never noticed any of that until there was a weariness to his stance that betrayed his age. If only Peter could find it in himself to calm down and ease the weight from his shoulders.

"Fuck it. And fuck him," Peter's heavy gaze shifted to Steve who's shoulders tensed at the venom in his tone, "And please stop trying to make me BFF's with him. It's not going to work, Mr. Stark. Let it go. I refuse to ally myself with someone who isn't looking out for everyone's best interest. What if next time he wants to leave me behind? Or you - _again_? I'm not an Avenger and I don't have to play nice with anyone I don't want to."

"Again?" Tony muttered and suddenly it clicked. His eyes suddenly lit up in understanding and the weary heaviness in his body disappeared and changed to agitation, "Peter, tell me this isn't about Siberia."

Peter's lips pursed and he said nothing.

Steve's lips parted in a breath of understanding, because finally - finally - this whole thing made sense. The gentle, kind, and bubbly boy he had seen sparringly around the Compound and had envisioned from Tony's stories definitely existed; it simply wasn't the man he wanted Captain America to see. That was something to work with.

Tony raised a hand and beckoned Peter to get closer to him. He was never one to disobey him and he swiftly took a few steps nearer. Once within arms reach, Tony pulled him into a hug, wrapping his arms around his shoulders and curling a hand in his hair. Within a breath his body began to shake with tears; Peter's fists were clenched in his shirt and his face was pressed against his chest.

Tony glanced at the others over Peter's shoulders and spoke softly, "I'm going to have a chat with my kid, you can all skedaddle now. Cap, carry Wilson to a guest room for some pants. I do not want to see him walk around on those stumps. Wilson, stay there until further instructed. Everyone else, lovingly piss off."

Other than Wade's, "Miss you already, baby boy!", the room emptied quietly. They had all been stunned by Peter's behaviour, but the mention of Siberia made sense of everything and they were sure if anyone could help the boy, it would be Tony.

Once everyone was gone, Tony slowly drew back from Peter, "Hey kiddo, let's take a seat."

Peter nodded and Tony guided them to a sofa where they sat side by side. Tony kept an arm over his shoulders to keep him close and offer comfort.

"I didn't know you knew anything about what happened in Siberia," Tony said. He had no idea where to start or how to address the situation, but he was going to do his damndest to try.

"I'm pretty good at connect the dots." Peter's voice came out watery, but his tears had mostly dried. He couldn't meet Tony's gaze.

"Of course," Tony huffed a laugh, "I should have guessed. But no matter how much or how little you managed to figure out, you _must_ know that I was equally at fault for everything that happened. None of it was 'just' Steve's fault."

"But you're _wrong_!" Peter protested, finally looking up at Tony with fire in his eyes, "Sure, you fought back, or maybe you even started it, _I don't know_ , but that's not the point! He... he left you there, all by yourself, with no help. If Friday wasn't programmed to call for another suit once yours started getting banged up, you would have been stranded in the middle of nowhere and with the suit's tracking broken we would never have found you, and you... you would have died out there."

Tony sighed, taking a moment to process the words.

"That's true," Tony agreed hesitantly, "But he didn't leave me there. It sure felt like it at the time, but since then he's let me know that he'd waited around close by to make sure I was picked up. We were both angry, and neither of us were exactly nice to the other during that battle, but he's not heartless. We've had our differences, obviously, but Steve is a good person and I think if you gave him a chance you'd really like him. I'm sure he's already forgiven you for punching him in the face."

Tony tried to end with a joke, but Peter remained gloomy.

"Look at it this way, Mr. Stark. Let's say, tomorrow, me and Wade get into a really bad fight. Like really, really bad. And he hurts me really bad, and he leaves me there with no way to help myself. And you, somehow, manage to find me and bring me home and help take care of me. But then, some time later, he apologizes and I decide to forgive him. Just like that. Would you forgive him just as easily? I know you, Mr. Stark. You'd never forgive him."

Tony ran his hand through Peter's hair and smiled softly, "You're not wrong, kiddo. But there's a difference here you're not thinking about. I'm the parent, it's literally in the job description to hate anyone who's ever laid a hand on you or looked at you sideways. Friday still keeps tabs on that Flash asshole who picked on you in high school. He's failing pretty badly at Columbia, by the way."

"But I love you, and he _hurt_ you, and it makes me so... so mad!"

"I understand. If the situation was reversed I'd probably behave worse than you did today. And we're going to have a talk about dealing with anger properly, don't think I'm letting that slip. But you're the child here, it isn't your responsibility to worry about me. Steve and I had a long talk, many long talks, actually, and we've forgiven each other. I trust him. Maybe not the same way I used to, but I would trust him to watch your back. And you know only a few people make that list. Listen, Peter, I can't tell you how to feel, and if you don't want to spend time with him, I won't make you, but I'd like to see you try."

"... I don't know." Peter's tears had completely dried and there was an air of resignation around him. He fell limp and rested his head on Tony's shoulder.

"I want you to trust my judgement. There's so much you can learn from him, it would do you a lot of good to take some time to get to know him. And you know, there are a lot of people who can't even stand the look of me, yet you still love me. Give him the benefit of the doubt, like you did for me."

Peter didn't respond, but Tony knew he was thinking over his words and didn't press him. They sat in silence for a few minutes, Peter taking the time to rest after the eventful day. He was near dozed off when Tony pressed a kiss to his temple and spoke up.

"Do you want to stay the night? I'll even let you keep Wilson over just this once."

Peter laughed softly, "Sure, thanks Mr. Stark. I'll go check up on him, make sure he isn't causing trouble."

"And I'll talk to Steve. I won't force you to apologize, but think about what I said, alright?"

"I will. And thanks for not... you know. I don't know. Being mad, I guess?"

"Of course, kiddo."

They both stood from the sofa and shared a quick hug. Tony pulled away but kept his hands on his shoulders to keep him close.

"You know I love you too, right Pete?"

"Obviously. I am fantastic."

Tony laughed and then smirked, "By the way, since I finally figured out one of your secrets, wanna share what's up with you and Wilson?"

Peter blushed and rolled his eyes, "Nothing!" He stepped away from him and walked towards the elevator, but stopped to look back at him with a look of doubt on his face, "But if there was, which there isn't, but if there _was_ something, would you be mad?"

Tony shrugged, "Honestly? Wilson's a pain in the ass, and Ned is definitely the better best friend, but as much as you trust him to watch your back, I do too. It's hard to fake that kind of devotion. And he makes you happy. I can't complain about that."

"Cool," Peter smiled, "Not that there's anything, because there isn't."

They stared at each other for a moment before Peter shot him an awkward thumbs up.

"Nice lecture. Ten out of ten. See you later, Mr. Stark."

The elevator doors closed behind him but he could still make out Tony's laugh through the metal.

**OoOoO**

Wade had changed into a hoodie and sweatpants, from Captain America's very own wardrobe, and he was lounging on the bed watching _The Good Place_ and munching on more granola bars because they wouldn't give him anything else.

Something about eating in bed being gross.

Peter had popped into his room to change into pyjamas before making his way to the guest room where Wade had made himself comfortable. It was strange, letting him see him in nothing but a t-shirt and Iron Man pyjama pants. Looking back, he wasn't really sure why he'd insisted on keeping his identity from him. It was incredibly freeing now that he didn't have to think about it.

"Hey, Wade," he greeted, entering the room.

"Hey, schnookums! How was your lecture?" Wade sat up against the headboard and Peter took a seat next to him. Close, but not _too_ close.

Peter shrugged, "It was fine. He's not forcing me to apologize, but pretty much hinted that I should."

He gave his friend a brief rundown of the conversation, and Wade listened attentively and nodded when it was appropriate. He'd even muted the TV to show his attentiveness.

"Dunno what to tell you, Petey Pie. You're in a bit of a pickle here."

"I know I can't convince you not call me that, but please remember not to while in suit."

"Of course," Wade huffed dramatically as if he'd been greatly offended.

Peter laughed, "Thanks."

"So, what are your thoughts?" Wade asked, bringing them back to the topic at hand.

"I don't know, to be honest. I know Mr. Stark's upset about everything, but it's hard to pretend nothing happened."

"He literally called you his kid, I'm sure you can call him Tony, or dad, by now," Wade interrupted and was promptly ignored.

"I know I acted like an asshole today, and I suppose it wouldn't hurt to at least be civil," Peter shrugged, "I'll figure it out later. I'm done thinking about Captain America for today. Wanna order in garbage and binge Who's The Boss?"

"Have I ever turned you down before, baby boy?"

**OoOoO**

There was an awkward air around the Compound for the first couple of days after what happened, but things eventually returned to normal. Peter resumed his studies and the Avengers continued about their every day lives. Nothing had really changed, other than any conversation with Peter obviously omitted Steve, and vice versa.

Peter traded off his weekends between the Compound and Aunt May's, occasionally managing to get the best of both worlds with family dinners. Two weekends after the fiasco, Peter returned to the Compound with dread in his stomach.

He didn't typically see Steve around, avoiding him at all cost, but now that everyone knew the truth he wondered if that would still be possible.

Luckily, it was. Nobody tried to intervene, and true to his word Tony didn't press for a reconciliation.

He made it to Saturday without seeing Steve at all.

He and Tony had spent the day together in the lab and then he'd been banished to work on some homework before dinner. The living room on Tony's floor was always empty in comparison to the common rooms, and he settled on the couch with his books.

It stayed empty for the first hour, until he was interrupted by none other than Captain America himself.

There was a rap against the wood of the doorframe and Peter looked up to see Steve standing awkwardly in the doorway.

"Hi," he said, sounding as awkward as he looked.

"Hey," Peter stiffened and bit his tongue from saying anything rude.

"Do you have a minute? I wanted to talk to you about the other day."

"Don't suppose I have much of a choice."

"Of course you have a choice, Peter. If you want me to leave, I will."

Peter sighed, "No, it's fine. Let's get this over with."

Steve nodded and stepped into the room. After a second of hesitation, he chose to sit on the other end of the couch Peter was sitting on. He crossed his hands in his lap and kept a firm gaze on Peter who's knees were brought up to his chest with his eyes fixed on the textbook resting in his lap; the perfect picture of someone who did not want to be there.

"The first thing I wanted to say was... You were right."

The admission caught his attention, but Peter didn't look at him yet.

"I never should have suggested we leave Wade behind. I wrongly assumed that, because of your relationship, you were going to throw out whatever plan to save him without thinking it through. I shouldn't have doubted you, and it was wrong of me to think it was okay to leave him behind just because of his powers. I wouldn't have ordered us to leave if it had been anyone else, and it's not fair to him for me to try and treat him differently. For that, I'm truly sorry, and I promise to do better in future missions. And I hope there are future missions, because working with you and Deadpool is always an honour."

There was a moment of silence between them before Peter let out a soft sigh and begrudgingly said, "Thank you, I appreciate the apology. And... I'm sorry for punching you in the face. It might shock you, but I'm actually not a violent person. That was the wrong way to deal with my anger."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Steve smile and was glad he'd said it. That was one guilt he could do without.

"Over the last couple of years, Tony and I have talked a lot about what happened in Siberia. We both had our fair share of apologies to make, and we've made a lot of headway in our friendship since it happened. It was only after the other day that I realized I never talked to you about it."

"You don't need to talk to me about it. I'm not interested in excuses."

"And I'm not looking to give you excuses. Rhodey and I have talked about that day, and I've even made amends with Pepper, but it never occured to me that I owed you an apology too."

"I'm not the person you hurt."

"But I did hurt you, Peter. I hurt someone you care about and by doing so I hurt you. It was never my intention to hurt any of you, but I did. I don't know if there's any way I could ever make that up to you. There are things I wish I'd done differently, but I can't change the past. All I can do is promise you that I would never hurt Tony again. I know how precious his friendship is, and that's not something I would risk again."

Peter looked at him and finally really looked at him.

Steve's hands were clenched in his lap and there was an intense earnestness in his gaze that suggested honesty. He was practically begging for his forgiveness, and for once Peter considered it.

Without letting his mind be clouded by past anger, he knew that Steve would never have truly left Wade behind. Siberia had been a long time ago and Steve had proven his loyalty since then, just as Tony had in return. Now that things had been brought to light and he'd had the chance to talk to both Tony and Steve, it hardly seemed fair to hold onto his grudge.

He didn't know if he could ever fully forgive him, because Tony was his family and he couldn't forget the pain he'd suffered, but if Tony was willing to forgive him, the least Peter could do was try.

"Okay," he said softly, "I can't say everything's fine and forgotten, but I'm willing to give this a try."

Steve's smile widened and his eyes brightened, "That's more than I was hoping for. Thank you, Peter."

It was impossible not to smile back at the sincerity in his words, "And I'm also sorry for the way I behaved. I should have handled all of that better."

"Apology unecessary, but accepted," Steve stood, "I'll leave you to your homework. Thank you for listening to me, Peter. I look forward to working with you again soon."

"Me too," he said, surprised that it wasn't a lie.

Peter felt a weight shift off his shoulders that he hadn't known was there in the first place. Anger was a consuming emotion, and though things weren't suddenly fixed, it was a solid starting point.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed my story!
> 
> If enough people like this I may write more for this, maybe make this a verse? I don't know, let me know your thoughts! I've never written anything for any of these characters before and I'm more of a new fan, so I still don't have the best grasp on the characters, so any and all feedback is welcome!
> 
> Edit 10/20/2018: Siberia, no Serbia because those are two completely different places. Thank you to the lovely commenter who kindly pointed out my mistake :)
> 
> Cheers :)


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